Put another candle on the birthday cake

The Yakima Herald Republic has a story today about the 20th anniversary of the 3-point shot in high school basketball.

It doesn't seem that long, but it was in the 1987-88 season when the long-range shot was put in the prep game (so it's really not 20 yet, because its birthday is in the fall).

I remember sitting in the Mead gym with John Blanchette, watching the Panthers play their 1987 season opener against Cheney. John was writing a column, I think, about the change and I was watching my friend coach. When Cheney got down six late, I turned to John and joked about the deficit only being two possessions (instead of the old three). It just seemed strange.

Not any longer.

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Thursday was a big night in prep hoops, starting in North Idaho, where Coeur d'Alene's boys took a big step toward the Inland Empire League title with a 63-45 victory over arch-rival Lake City.

The Idaho girls have started postseason play, and Lakeland got out of the gates quickly with a win over Moscow in a 4A Region I game.

In the Greater Spokane League, it was a spirit night, with Shadle Park's boys edging North Central on Anthony Brown's last-second shot and the girls breezing past the Indians in the Groovy Shoes, won by NC.

From the West Side, Hudson's Bay's girls, coached by former Ferris mentor Art Rojas, moved a step closer to the Class 3A greater St. Helens League title with a 62-49 win over Columbia River. Hudson's Bay can clinch the title with a win over Camas tonight. … Enumclaw's boys won the South Puget Sound League 3A title with a victory over Auburn. … Peninsula's girls are nearing an Olympic League title. … Lincoln's boys defeated Foss to stay in the Narrows League Bridge Division hunt. … Mariner's boys will be playing in the 4A postseason after pounding Lynnwood. … Jackson's girls routed Mountlake Terrace. … Kentwood, led by GU-signee Courtney Vandersloot's 34 points, finished a perfect regular season with a win over Decatur. … Kennedy's boys won their 14th consecutive game, stopping Mount Rainer. … Rene Ferran has a list of the 10 best high school girls he's covered in the Columbia Basin, led by Kennewick's Leilani Mitchell. ... Vancouver's Evergreen High has